Everafter
by HeavenBesideYou13
Summary: Living forever: there is never an end. You can live, and love, and laugh for as long as your heart desires. But eventually, eternal life becomes something of a cruel joke. Oneshot. [Bella/Alice] Slight Bella/Edward.


A/N: I was thinking about the reality of living forever while watching BD Pt 2 and this AU oneshot just came to me. Bellice, of course, but lightly Bellice, more focused on the truth about living forever.

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><p>An eternity is more than you can fathom.<p>

To live a century is a blessing; to live a millennia is a curse. Memories can only live so long, a mind can only think so much, a body cannot resist ache forever, but, as Bella watches the world burn, she realizes that the heart never stops loving.

The petite, pretty, brunette girl sits on the patio of a tall, crooked manor, staring as the atmosphere burns, the sun swallows in the distance, and the screaming slowly silences. Bella quite enjoys the sound of silence. She always has. Her skin does not burn like the skeletons that litter the pavement in the distance, her eyes do not flicker with the fear of never living a full life.

Bella has lived far more than a full life. She, though in the body of a sixteen year old, has known more than all of the trembling bodies of the dying human race. War, poverty, famine, disease, drought—she has seen them all loom on the horizon, then engulf the people she distances herself from.

She is not human. To be a human is to live a short life—a whirlwind. She is not magical either, for that would be some solace. No, Bella is a spirit, in some sense, though her body is corporeal. And, as of over a hundred years ago, she is the last of her kind.

It all began, Bella muses to herself, with two high school best friends. It was the mid two-thousands, a funny time. Most people think it to be ancient history, but it felt like the future was then. And these two girls had a common dream, as much as they had a caring friendship.

Both girls always thought, _if only, if only we could live forever_.

Her counterpart was named Alice, and a fiery yet optimistic spirit. Bella was always more shy, clumsy, dependent and soft spoken. Alice knew what she wanted, and Alice always got it. They had known each other for fourteen years, and dreamt of an eternity together.

Bella chuckles mirthlessly to herself. It only hurts when she laughs.

She did not know that Alice was in love with her at the time, although Bella was dating Alice's brother. That the doodles in Alice's notebook read _Bella Cullen _and it was really so they could be together. But that did not matter in the end; they were friends at least.

The two girls devised a devious plot. They set it about to the best of their ability, and it came to them easily. They found it—the glory of the gods—the Fountain of Youth. Now, this seems to be a silly tale, so Bella does not go into the details. They drank from it.

"Bella," Alice said softly, sipping from the goblet, "it's funny nothing terrible happened to us."

"Why?" Bella asked, setting her empty glass down.

"In all the movies, something really awful happens to the heroes when they find the treasure." It was a reasonable inquiry.

"Those are just movies."

Oh, the cruel thought that they could not anticipate their fates.

And soon, the effects of the elixir took effect. The girls did not age, unnatural at best. Their societies outcasted them, for, being young until one is twenty or thirty is only natural, but when your younger siblings' hair is grey, and you have the youthful forms and childish wiles, you are deemed monsters.

The best friends set out eventually, traveling the world and the seven seas. Did they miss their old life? Perhaps. But, the same old town grows tiresome for the young and restless, and the best friends were the epitome of that. They scoured every corner of the globe, searching far and wide for adventure.

Years passed. About a century after their adventures, they had seen it all. And, it led them back home, to the town they grew up in. No one recognized them when they returned. Their neighbors were long gone, replaced by young, happy couples and the grandchildren of those that came before.

Alice's home had been demolished, and Bella's was becoming old and creaky. They walked down the sidewalks, seeing the children playing with holographic chalk. They could recall that they only had jump-ropes to play with.

"Who are you?" the grave-keeper asked, looking aged. "There's something familiar."

"We're looking for our grandparents," Alice replied simply and sweetly, and the grave-keeper nodded, returning to his work.

The two friends held hands, fearing what came next. They stood, staring at the headstones of their family members. Their brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, parents... they were all torn from them. Neither girl cried. They had seen enough death, and been unable to experience it for so long, that it was almost a gift to them.

_It must be nice to die_, Bella had thought, but then she recalled why it was so beautiful to live forever.

There is never an end. You can live, and love, and laugh for as long as your heart desires.

"Where to next?" was Alice's question, her lips twitching with a plastic smile.

Bella shrugged.

"We've seen it all, haven't we?" she asked and Alice was quiet for a moment.

"Then let's grow old together," Alice said, quite cheerfully, and Bella nodded.

They settled into a manor on the outskirts of a lovely city. They made it their home, furnished it, loved it. It was a beautiful place, with chandeliers and old, rickety sofas. They read books, for most of the time. It was a collection of theirs, seeing as the ink and paper volumes had been replaced by digital letters.

Bella and Alice both had Kindles once, but those were replaced by such silly things. They looked where they could, and found old books. Perhaps they were reading the same thing again and again, but it was better than what writing had deteriorated to.

And one day, Bella found something odd. She was walking down the street, heading to the grocery store. Neither girl ever had to worry about money, for accumulating it was incredibly easy when you outlive everyone on the street by a good three centuries. She bumped into someone, knocking him straight off of his feet.

She helped him up and shoved his basket back in his hands.

"Sorry about that," Bella said and the boy blushed.

"It's fine," he said and Bella began to move away. "Are you new here?"

Bella perked up, finding it strange.

"No," she said softly. "Are you?"

He nodded, still seeming flustered.

She then said, "I could show you around."

He grinned stupidly. Bella missed when she could be so dumb and loud. Time refines, and time tests all things young and idiotic. And this boy reminds her of Edward, the boy she watched die and was filled with regret. She saw his tombstone and wondered why he could not live forever like her. But this boy has amber eyes that _could _pass for gold if Bella squinted.

"I'd like that," he said brightly and Bella allowed herself to smile.

And soon, seeming so quick, as a year was like a split second in the girls' eyes, they were madly in love. Bella had never been swept off her feet before, but now she was. They never left each others' sides, and while Alice was mildly jealous, she knew it could not end well.

In what felt like a few days, the boy had grown to be twenty. And, Bella, was still in the prime of her youth. He thought it to be odd, and sat down for a dinner with the two girls.

"You're different, aren't you?" were his forward words. "You're not like everyone else."

"Yes, we're vampires," was Alice's brusque reply and the boy seemed to believe it.

"That's amazing," he said and Alice rolled her gilded eyes.

"Look," Bella said, playing with her fork, "Alice and I, we can live forever."

The boy did not even seem fazed. _That must be what love is_, was Alice's first thought. And then an acidic feeling in the pit of her stomach as she realized that Bella did not love her like that. She would always love Edward, even though he died centuries ago.

"Then..." But then it hit him. "We can't be together forever."

"I know." Bella seemed sad for the first time in a long time.

"Well, I'll make my time with you last."

After what was like a week to Bella, the boy had lived his whole life. He ignored the funny looks he got at being an aging man with a young girl. They kissed in the park, held hands, loved and laughed. And Bella watched as the boy's health deteriorated.

Bella once came home, late in the night, sobbing. Alice had run to her, caught her in her arms and held her as she wept. Eventually, the words came out.

"He's dead." But, as expected, they lived to forget.

That night, Alice walked to Bella's room. She sat down and studied Bella intently. Bella's eyes were tear-streaked.

"I've been holding this in for a long time... but I've always loved you."

"I love you too," Bella replied, as if Alice were stupid.

"I mean... romantically." Alice leaned forward with her eyes squeezed shut and kissed Bella.

And so it began.

When the war began, Alice and Bella were still living in their little manor. They would sit and have tea, and watch the humongous, high-definition holo-screen as it told the horrid events. War happened often, and they ended easily. But this one was worse.

For, the south ran out of drinking water, and the north refused their demands. Their differences were immense, and the loathing between the former enemies was seething. And, therefore, the second civil war raged.

One day, the soldiers came to Alice and Bella's city. They sat in their attic, looking out the window with binoculars. It's horrid, Alice knows, but they watched the suffering with intrigue.

Soon, it ended, the fires died, the corpses piled and the soldiers left. And then, oddly enough, someone showed up on Alice and Bella's doorstep.

It was a young girl, frail and dirty. She was sobbing and clutching a small doll. Bella picked her up and held her in her arms. Bella had once loathed children, but now she was envious of them. They did not understand why they should treasure their youth so much.

Alice and Bella fawned over her, learning her name was Renesmee and her parents were killed brutally. And so, Bella and Alice raised Renesmee. They were lovers and parents and felt as if they were a true family for the first time. Renesmee grew up in the manor, living a carefree life. The war ended, time moved on, the world continued to spin on its axis.

Bella did not believe the day would come when Renesmee would die. Renesmee soon grew older than they were, but she still clung to them and loved them like mothers. Alice knew her daughter would die, so she tried to make her life last. Bella was always weaker. But they loved each other all the same.

"Alice," Bella said softly in the dead of the night, while Alice played on her iPhone 136S. "Nessie's getting old."

"We... could find the fountain again." Alice knew it was a stupid idea.

"Do you want to hold her while she dies, or do you want her to move on?" They were the only two options.

And so, Alice sat down with Renesmee one day before she returned to college.

"Nessie," Aloe said, looking at someone who could be her older sister, "I need you to forget about us."

Renesmee looked startled.

"What do you mean?" God, it was hard to say.

Alice took her hand gently, holding it. They were calloused, aged, while Alice's were lily and youthful, smooth.

"I want you to live a full life, and not have to think of us. I want you to find someone you love, and grow old, and die happy. I don't want you to be stuck with us forever." It broke her heart.

Renesmee began to cry, and Alice followed suit. They held each other and sobbed.

"I don't want to leave." Mucus poured from her nose.

"I know," Alice said but, eventually, Renesmee knew what she had to do.

And one morning, she left the victims of the Fountain of Youth, and went to live her life. They tried to forget about her, knowing she was happy now, but Alice could never shake off the touch of her hand, the warmth of her child's body against Alice's.

They saw her in a movie one day. Their Renesmee became a star. And, on the News one day, they learned of her death. It hurt, but she lived. She lived like Alice and Bella never would or never could.

Isn't it funny that in order to live forever, you sacrifice what it means to live?

"Have we grown old together?" Bella once asked, looking out at the sprawling city.

The whole planet was just a city now, and their manor was trapped in one of the blocks. It was old compared to the new, metal and plastic buildings. But they had more money than the entire world's governments had pooled together, so they could pay off anyone.

"I think so," was Alice's reply, and they spoke no more of it.

Someone broke into the manor one night. Bella was sitting awake, drinking tea. She looked up at the man and he advanced on her, but Bella did not move. He was dirty and immoral, but she did not fear him. Nothing could kill her—what did she have to fear?

He looked perplexed as he held his gun to her forehead.

"Shoot me," Bella breathed and he lowered the gun.

"Just hand over the..." He trailed off as Bella opened a drawer, withdrawing their own, old fashioned, still-using bullets pistol.

She held it to her temple and looked at him in the eyes.

"I think you should rethink your life," she said. "You only have so long."

And she pulled the trigger.

"Bella," Alice scolded as she woke up in bed, "you scared that poor man to death."

Bella shrugged.

"He needed a lesson." And they spoke no more of it.

The two best friends sat on the roof at night in the overcrowded city.

"Do you remember when there was a star there?" Bella suddenly asked, pointing up at the empty spot in the sky.

"Yeah," Alice said, thinking it funny. "It was Sirius or something, right? Like the man in _Harry Potter_."

She had always loved those books. Now they're classics, but back in her day they were new and all the rage.

"Yeah." They stared up at the sky for hours more. "Do you ever think the elixir will wear off?"

"Has it yet?" Alice asked and Bella shrugged.

"Maybe." And she jumped off of the roof.

After a few moments, Bella stood up, brushed herself off and shook her head. Alice frowned

They made love that night with a melancholy note.

Alice didn't try to wake her in the morning. Fair enough, though most of them do. So, Alice got up, got dressed and went home. Bella was sitting inside, knitting. No one knitted anymore, but it was nice to cling to the old things.

And one day, after living a life of Bella's obsession with ancient history, and their never-ending, passionate love affair, they grew jaded. Perhaps they always were sick of eternal life, but now it was worse. People died even quicker now of worse ways. The air was nearly poison, but Alice and Bella could breathe as easily as if it were still 2013. They did not even need to breathe.

Bella once came into Alice's room at night, sitting down on the floor. Alice got up and joined her at her side.

"What's wrong?" she asked, offering her a bottle of purified ocean water.

Bella did not take it.

"Would you hate me if I died?" she asked and Alice was silent.

"I don't think you can," Alice said and Bella shook her head, biting her lip.

"I _want _to die," Bella said harshly, seizing Alice's hand.

"I wouldn't hate you," was Alice's quiet reply.

"Hold me and watch one last movie." Alice had no idea what she was talking about, but they tapped into the internet and started to play an old film, _Ferris Bueller's Day Off_.

And as they watched it, they laughed like the jokes were new. It was a film they once watched together, long ago, and, now, it was the end, instead of the beginning.

And, in the morning, Bella was gone.

Alice laughs a little again. That is the terrible thing the Fountain did. They didn't need any traps or tricks—they just had to let you slowly die inside, while living forever on the outside.

Now, Alice watches the end of the world. It's kind of pretty, actually. Everything seems like it happens in a blink, in a heartbeat.

She stands up and starts to walk down the burning road.

And she thinks, as she always does, _if only, if only I could die today._


End file.
